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It’s all come down to this: the biggest decision of your life. Dun dun duhhh! You’ve been waffling back and forth, eenie-meenie-miney-moe-ing your heart out. Because, gosh, both options are wonderful.

I mean, one is clearly better. But it’s new! And it’s for your boss. You can just hear them saying, “Uh, this is great and all, but I like getting the same thing every time. Change is scary.”

So let’s hear it: Do you want one scoop of vanilla? Or do you want more?

Fudge?! Sprinkles!? A scoop of chocolate AND a scoop of mint on top of that vanilla?! Pretzels! Cookies! Yum. Try your best to not eat it on the way back to the office.

Just like ice cream, Lemonly infographics are always a good idea. And just like your choice of ice cream toppings, you get to choose between a couple infographic options when you work with Lemonly:

You can get the basics with a JPG, or you can get more with an SVG.

Both are image formats, and both can display infographics. SVGs are just better for a few reasons.

To explain what an SVG is, let’s start with what a JPG isn’t, then we’ll talk about the advantages SVGs offer.

What a JPG is Not

Clearly, JPGs are here to stay. They’re easy to export and upload to a website, and they can pack a ton of information and beauty in just a few megabytes.

But they do have a few downsides:

  • The text within JPGs isn’t readable by computers. This means search engines likely won’t index the text within your infographic, and the accessibility of your content will take a hit.
  • URLs in a JPG can’t be linked individually. Want to allow your site visitors to go from your infographic to whatever you’re selling or click out for more information about particular points? Welp, you can add only one URL, and it will cover the whole image.
  • Pixelation can get to be noticeable on larger screens. JPGs can only be as large as their original file, so if someone’s browser window is 2,000 pixels wide and the JPG is only 500 pixels wide, that image is gonna look rough. Now entering: Pixelation station.

The good thing? There is another option…

What An SVG Is

You know what they say about showing, not telling. Here’s an example of an SVG:

Notice how the text is selectable? How the graphics are sharp? And check out how we’ve linked both the call-to-action and each individual source.

Take a look at this load of advantages:

  • SVGs are more accessible. Assistive technology like screen readers can read SVGs more easily than raster images like JPGs, making your infographic more accessible for users with visual or cognitive impairments.
  • SVGs are indexable by search engines. Text within SVG infographics can be read by search engines, helping boost your SEO.
  • We can add a ton of links to SVGs. Think: clickable CTAs, sources, and links to more information for folks who really want a deep dive on your subject matter.
  • The V in SVGs stands for “vector,” meaning graphics don’t degrade as they get larger. Your SVG infographic will look pixel-perfect at any size or zoom level—often with a smaller file size and faster load time.

SVG = MVP

So why, you ask, doesn’t everyone make their infographics as SVGs? Well, because they take some smarts to create and upload. That’s the leg up that JPGs will likely always have: A JPG is just easier to export and upload to a site.

But because we know how great SVGs are—and because we have the smarts to make them work for just about any style, website, and client—you don’t have to choose. Every static infographic Lemonly makes comes with a static SVG version as a complimentary add-on, so you’ll get the regular ol’ JPG file as usual and an accessible, indexable, scalable SVG, ready to add to your website. Vanilla, meet sprinkles.

Want even more sweet toppings on that ice cream cone? We can also make clickable and/or animated SVGs (like this one) for an additional investment.

Point is, SVGs are perfect for infographics, and we think more marketers should take advantage of what SVGs can offer.

So if you’re up for it, how do you make an SVG infographic? You can actually keep designing in Adobe Illustrator, since you’ll export your SVG from there. It’s a bit technical of a process to get them looking and working well, but you’re welcome to follow along with our list of best practices here.

If you want to leave that all to us, then we’re happy to help. Just let us know that you want all the fixings that an SVG can give ya, and we’ll make your infographic shine in all its glory.